To indicate who is speaking here, Good News Translation adds the quote frame “But the LORD says.” Bible en français courant is similar with “But the Lord responds to you.” The conjunction “But” indicates that Yahweh does not accept Israel’s repentance in 6.1-3. Since 6.4-6 is not necessarily a response to their repentance, this conjunction should not be used. If it is necessary to make the speaker explicit, translators can say simply “The LORD says.”

What shall I do with you, O Ephraim? What shall I do with you, O Judah?: The repeated question here is rhetorical, so Yahweh does not expect an answer. He is expressing his frustration with his people. The translation depends on the use and occurrence of rhetorical questions in the receptor language. If they do not occur in the receptor language, or they function differently, an emphatic statement is recommended, for example, “I don’t know what to do with you.” The Hebrew phrase rendered do with you is ambiguous. It can mean “do about you,” “do to you [as punishment],” or “do for you [to help you to become better].” The ambiguity reflects God’s frustration, and it resembles the frustration expressed in chapters 1–3 over what Hosea should do with an unfaithful wife whom he continues to love. Discipline is perhaps the most important idea to reflect in the translation of this question. Andersen and Freedman express it well with “How shall I deal with you…?” (also New English Bible).

The Hebrew pronoun for you is singular in both rhetorical questions. In the next line the pronoun for your is plural. In translation the use of singular in the first two lines depends on the translation of Ephraim and Judah. If it is necessary to make explicit that the text talks about “the people of…,” the use of plural is the obvious choice.

O Ephraim and O Judah show that Yahweh is addressing both the northern and the southern kingdoms, and the fact that these two nations—both of them God’s people—were at war with each other seems to add to Yahweh’s sense of frustration. O is the old English form for introducing direct address (sometimes called vocative form) and is no longer used in English. However, the receptor language may still have vocative forms that are part of everyday usage, for example, a special case to indicate the vocative. If so, it makes sense to use it here. The natural position of the vocative, at the beginning or the end of the sentence, may also be language specific. For Ephraim as another name for “Israel” (Good News Translation), see the comments on 4.17.

Good News Translation combines the two questions into one and addresses the two nations at the beginning of the question, “Israel and Judah.” This may not be the best solution in all receptor languages. The repetitive element in these lines marks emphasis. This is lost if the two are combined. In many languages this repetitive type of parallelism is totally natural and adds to the poetic character of the passage.

Your love is like a morning cloud, like the dew that goes early away: Love translates the Hebrew word chesed. It is closely related to the idea of a covenant, in which both parties are to be faithful and loyal to each other. Therefore, an emotion-filled word for love should not be used unless it primarily implies that a person will not leave or desert the one loved. Compare the use of the same term in 2.19 and 4.1. New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh renders it “goodness,” which is a weak expression. New American Bible‘s “piety” loses the central component of being reliable. New English Bible and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch both have “loyalty,” which is very appropriate here. Another option is “faithfulness” ( NET Bible). In this sentence, of course, Yahweh complains that their love lasts only a short time and then disappears. In Hebrew the object of love is not expressed, but Good News Translation makes it explicit by saying “Your love for me” (similarly Bible en français courant).

The Hebrew word for cloud normally refers to clouds high in the sky, but it can also refer to anything near ground level, for example, a cloud of incense or a mist or fog. In Palestine there is often mist early in the morning, but it soon disappears. Yahweh compares their faithfulness to such a morning fog that quickly vanishes. Good News Translation makes this explicit by saying “Your love for me disappears as quickly as morning mist.” Similarly, dew condenses during the night on cool plants and on the ground. It is often heavy in Palestine and is an important source of moisture, but the heat of the sun dries it up, so it goes early away, meaning it disappears shortly after dawn, at an early hour. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch has “it goes away as quickly as dew before the sun.” New International Version says “like the early dew that disappears,” which is not accurate since in Hebrew the word for early modifies the verb goes … away, not the noun dew.

It is important to notice how a morning cloud and the dew are mentioned in contrast with the showers and the spring rains in the previous verse. The moisture from Israel and Judah disappears quickly, while the moisture from Yahweh is far more steady and reliable. If at all possible, the choice of words in the receptor language should reflect this difference.

A translation model for this verse is:

• Ephraim, what should I do with you?
Judah, what should I do with you?
Your loyalty disappears quickly like fog in the morning,
like dew that goes away early.

Quoted with permission from Dorn, Louis & van Steenbergen, Gerrit. A Handbook on Hosea. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2020. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .